In a compelling seminar at the Indian Law Institute, the Group of Intellectuals and Academicians (GIA) commemorated the sixth anniversary of the 2020 Delhi riots, analyzing them through lenses of regime change ambitions and sophisticated information battles. The gathering featured retired envoys, senior ex-bureaucrats, police veterans, advocates, and civic leaders, fostering a rich exchange on the riots’ deeper machinations.
Leading the charge, former Delhi Police Commissioner SN Srivastava declared the riots integral to an international pattern exploiting violence for governmental overthrow. He outlined operational hurdles for forces, as instigators expected—and provoked—stern measures to fan flames, echoing unrest in Bangladesh and Nepal.
Ex-RAW director Sanjeev Tripathi demystified ‘fifth-generation info warfare,’ revealing how riots fuel narrative engineering, mental manipulation, and targeted propaganda in today’s blended warfare paradigms.
Ambassador Veena Sikri invoked the Bangladesh precedent, positing narrative dominance as the crux: whoever masters public perception and international outreach dictates the endgame.
GIA’s Monika Arora deemed the episode a strategic ‘trial’ to unsettle administration, advocating persistent academic probes and mass sensitization. Chandar Wadhwan dissected ‘deep state’ interventions, weighing their far-reaching consequences.
The conclave ended affirmatively, with GIA vowing to propel public enlightenment, rigorous studies, and factual debates on Delhi riot themes, equipping the nation to thwart evolving threats.